USC Viterbi Researchers receive NSF EFRI Grant

The NSF’s Emerging Frontiers in Research and Innovation (EFRI) award will fund work on a system for the early detection of shunt malfunctions in people with excessive brain fluid with a $2-Million grant

Ellis Meng

Malancha Gupta

James Weiland

Three USC Viterbi engineers have received a prestigious $2-million grant from the National Science Foundation for a joint research project on a wireless, multi-sensor system for the early detection of shunt malfunctions in people with excessive brain fluid.

“I’m pretty thrilled to win this,” said principal investigator Dr. Ellis Meng, an associate professor in biomedical engineering and electrical engineering. “We get to use some of the technologies we’ve been incubating, including sensors that work in water.”

The NSF’s Office of Emerging Frontiers in Research and Innovation (EFRI) awarded the four-year grant, the second time in recent years that a team of USC researchers has landed the competitive award.

Meng and co-principal investigators Dr. Malancha Gupta, an assistant professor in chemical engineering and materials science, and Dr. James Weiland, Professor of Ophthalmology and Biomedical Engineering, hope to devise a way to embed or integrate sensors into shunts for people with hypocephalus. A chronic, incurable condition characterized by excess fluid in the brain, hypocephalus affects an estimated one in 1,000 newborns and includes symptoms such as headaches, nausea and dizziness.

At present, about 75 percent of the shunts fail within 10 years, typically becoming clogged. Because doctors have no way to monitor the shunt’s effectiveness externally, they often have to wait a while before diagnosing the problem. In the meantime, patients suffer and medical costs rise with repeated doctors’ visits.

As envisioned, the trio of USC researchers would embed or integrate multiple wireless sensors onto shunts. Physicians, using digital hand-held devices, could take readings to test for changes in pressure and flow. The ability to quickly and accurately diagnose shunt problems, Meng said, would decrease patient suffering and lower medical costs. Doctors typically replace faulty shunts.

With the proposed system, “we can get data whenever we want, wherever we want,” Meng said.

Meng, as principal investigator, will manage the research project. Gupta will design coatings and materials to protect sensors within the body and increase their flexibility. Weiland will collaborate on sensor materials and conduct tests on the device as it evolves.